


Flyin' High

by DragonRose35



Category: Fable (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College, Alternate Universe - Dragon Racing, Angst, Character Death, Dragons, F/F, F/M, Female Slash, Fluff, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, Lexal is a Shifter, M/M, Magic, Male Slash, Multi, Multi pairings, Original Characters - Freeform, Original Pairings - Freeform, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-05
Updated: 2016-07-05
Packaged: 2018-07-21 18:38:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,564
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7399015
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DragonRose35/pseuds/DragonRose35
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Albion is the greatest college in the magical world when it came to the one thing Hiro was most passionate about: dragon racing. Too bad he didn’t know his own world would soon be turned upside down after he finally makes it in.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Flyin' High

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: This work hasn't been posted to Fanfiction.Net yet, and likely won't be for a while. As a result, only the prologue has been completed so far, but I'm hoping, that after getting good feedback from you guys, that more will be written some time soon this week.
> 
> This is another Au, though, so proceed with caution. *chuckles*
> 
> Oh yeah, also, while it says Lexal is a shifter in this one too, that doesn't mean I made him a dog again. Nope. This time, guys, he's a dragon! *grins*
> 
> Enjoy~
> 
> ~ D.C. (Wolf)

The arena was huge, with an oval track that ran about thirteen miles long and enough seats to nearly five hundred thousand people. Separating the track and the seats was a large, thick barrier cast of magic, so the ‘accidents’ in the race _stayed_ inside the tracks.

Already, half of the seats were filled with people of all different sizes and colors as they cheered loudly for those lining up on the tracks- five riders on the backs of their _dragons_.

One boy in particular- about seven years old- thought he was the most excited out of everyone to see the race, his short black hair a mess and his bright blue eyes sparkling. His mother- her long brown hair tied in a ponytail and her eyes matching his- was standing just beside him, grinning down at her little boy with happiness. She was happy for him because this was his dream- to see the races and then one day, perhaps, _become_ a rider himself- even though she never liked it- she always said dragon racing was too dangerous of a sport for her special little boy.

It was a backhanded compliment, but the boy took it anyway, seeing her words for what they really were: acceptance.

His father, and her husband, was at the confessions, procuring a pretzel for himself, a drink for his wife, and a chocolate stick for his little boy. By the time he got back to them, the race was about to start.

“Momma! Daddy! Look! Look!” the boy pointed down, excitedly, at the dragons, his eyes taking in every single one of them- along with their riders.

Only a child and he knew exactly who they were and who their dragons were; Lena Braveheart was second in line, with her short blonde hair tucked neatly under her helmet, and her sharp silver eyes matching that of her dragon’s scales- Calisto, a beautiful silver female Skywing that was small, but fast. Archer Hemingway was in the first slot of the line up, his dark hair hidden under his own helmet and his equally dark eyes focused only on the track, his hands clutching tightly at the reins secured to his dragon- Dargo, a near black male Drakwing that was large and heavy, but fierce on the track. Mina Harper was a small rider, lined up in the fifth slot, with her long brown hair tied in a bun and her soft green eyes smiling pleasantly down at her dragon- Rula, a beautiful, but small, white furred female Arkwing that was gentle and loving, but cunning most of all. And in the fourth slot was Rick Bayard, a fierce man with dark features like Archer, and a dragon that he cared about most in the world- Chaos, a dark red and black female Skywing that was tough and never distracted.

But the rider was the little boy’s favorite was none of than Alistair King, a man with bright features- bright blue eyes and golden blonde hair- and a personality that was kind and gentle and fierce and loyal. And his dragon- Demira- was a beautiful dark blue female Skywing whose personality matched his in every way.

“Hiro, love, sit back!” his mother scolded him gently and he barely managed to sit back a little from the small barrier separating his row from the row in front of him. When his father got his attention, though, he looked away for just a second to accept the chocolate covered cookie stick and munched happily on it before turning right back to the race.

“Riders!” the announcer’s voice carried loudly over the cheers of the people in the stands and Hiro perked up immediately. “At your ready!” Several roars followed his voice and Hiro was at the edge of his seat with anticipation as his mother and father laughed quietly behind him, their voices drowned out by the crowd and the dragons themselves.

Seconds later a horn blew and then the dragons and their riders were off, flying fast and efficiently down the track.

Alistair was in the lead and Hiro’s eyes followed him like a hawk watching its prey.

“That’s going to be _me_ one day!” he vowed, mostly to himself, as the crowd drowned out his voice and for once split second, he could have _sworn_ that Alistair’s eyes met _his_.

-0-

The woods were small and barren, covered in snow and frost and the trees were bare, hanging over the boy’s- he’s eight now- head like long fingers and bony hands waiting to snatch him up. His magic, a secret to many but his parents and his best friend, kept the darkness at bay, though, as he jumped and hopped through snowbanks and over bushes and fallen logs, giggling loudly as he pretended he was racing on his very own dragon.

He knew the benefits of every breed- from the powerful, land dwelling Drakwings, to the beautiful and fierce Skywings, and even the graceful and cunning Arkwings- and he oftentimes pictured what it would be like to race any of the three. He was too small to handle a Drakwing though and Arkwings were hard to handle for most trainers regardless of size. So it was only natural that his ideal dragon would be a Skywing- he only hoped he’d be able to meet one, one day. And to train him or her to be his very own dragon.

He’s only about fifteen minutes from his village, but the woods get darker the further he goes along and by the time that even the barren trees seem to block the sun from his pale skin, Hiro is starting to get a little worried. And a few steps later, he was beginning to wonder if he shouldn’t just turn back and head home.

Dark laughter echoed, though, through the woods, followed by a pained roar and Hiro stiffened up, frightened and curious and somehow angry all at once.

Taking off in the direction of the noise, he kept tight hold of his magic, feeling the itch crawling beneath his skin to use it. For more than just protection from the darkness.

It was only when he saw the man- dragon hunter, Hiro’s brain supplied when he recognized the bow and arrow and the man’s clothes- with the knife poised above the trapped- _beautiful_ \- dragon, that Hiro let his magic out. He shouted at the man, “ _Hey_!” and threw out his hand, pushing the man into a bank of snow with a powerful gust of wind.

The dragon thrashed around in the chains, trying to get out and it screeched loudly when it heard- and felt- Hiro and his magic. Hiro’s heart clenched at the sight and the sounds, but he focused on the hunter, who was now standing up and glaring darkly at the kid. “You’re a long way from home, don’t ya think?” he growled and Hiro glared back- it wasn’t very effective for a kid his age, but he didn’t want the man to think he was scared.

“Bully! Leave the dragon alone!” Hiro puffed out and the man managed both a scowl and a smirk at the same time, which frightened Hiro more than the boy could ever say.

“I caught ‘im fair and square, boy,” he snarled, tilting his head up high as he dared Hiro to do something about it all. Hiro’s magic itched again and he pushed his hands out again, refusing to use anything other than wind to fight this battle. He only hoped the man didn’t try to charge him with the knife, or do something worse.

“I-I’m warning you!” Hiro’s heart stuttered, beating furiously in his chest and the man stared at him with a dark expression.

“And what’s a kid like you gonna do to a man like me?” the hunter growled in question and started stalking towards Hiro, who started shaking- and it wasn’t from the cold of winter. “Go on, try somethin’, see what happens.”

“I-I… s-stop…!” Hiro swallowed hard and clenched his fists before finally having enough, watching as the man drew ever closer. He was desperate- he would never win in a fair fight against a man three times his size who had a knife- and so he let his skin heat up and finally threw his hands out for a different reason, throwing fire at the man and he flinched when he heard the man cry out in pain.

He cried out himself when the man threw his knife on reflex, hitting Hiro in his shoulder and the boy stumbled onto the ground, clutching at his bleeding shoulder, tears in his eyes as he watched the man run away, burned and scarred, without his knife and his catch.

Hiro sat in the snow, cold and hurt, for several minutes, crying to himself as he tried to stop the pain, his magic not developed enough to heal him without draining him. His mother had once told him to never use his magic like that unless he was in a safe and secure spot, so that when he tired himself out, he could sleep it off without getting more hurt. But now, he was afraid to use his magic and afraid to touch the knife because it _hurt_ and he, for just a brief moment, forgot about the dragon altogether.

It wasn’t until the dragon whined pitifully that Hiro’s attention was drawn back to it and the boy swallowed hard, sniffling, his breath catching and he was exhausted from crying and he still hurt, but suddenly it didn’t seem so bad when he noticed the chains still around the poor creature.

Slowly, he made his way through the snow on his knees and tried not to jostle his shoulder or the knife, and he reached out his good arm to touch the chains. The dragon jerked back and roared in anger at him and it was only then that Hiro realized that the dragon was _blind_ and he finally stopped, sitting back to take a good long look at it.

The dragon was small, about the size of a pony, but it was long and lean and covered in fur and scales. It was a beautiful dark color, like the night sky, with a light dusting here and there of white and pale blue, like stars, and it’s wings were small, and leather, with the same dusting of star-like dots on it. Hiro marveled at it for a second, wondering what breed it was- the dragon was too small to be a Drakwing, but it could very well have been a cross between a Skywing- because of the wings- and an Arkwing- with it’s long lean body, long thin tail, and long lithe neck. It’s head was also small, but somehow it just added to it’s beauty; and it’s eyes were pale, and a beautiful silver that reminded Hiro of the moon.

“Wow…” he whispered and reached out again, only to stumble back with a cry when the dragon thrashed around and it’s tail hit against the knife, jerking it a little. The pain came back full force and Hiro curled up and let the tears flow, his thoughts no longer on the dragon and instead on how much he _hurt_ and he wished his mother was there, making everything okay again.

Hiro didn’t know when he had passed out, but when he woke up, he was warm and the pain was dull. When he tried reaching a hand up towards where the knife was supposed to be, he found his hand unable to move and the warmth around him became constricting. He hissed and whimpered, trembling when he realized that he was still outside, in the woods, and in the snow.

He opened his eyes a little and found the source of the warmth, the dragon wrapped around him like a cocoon- though he didn’t know how the dragon got out of the chains in the first place, or maybe it never did and he just couldn’t feel the chains digging into his skin- and he also saw the knife on the ground, his blood coloring the snow red. “O-oh…” he bit back another whimper and looked back at the dragon, who was looking in his general direction with soft silver eyes.

It was then that he realized he was safe, with the dragon curled around him, and he smiled blearily, finally letting his magic take care of his wound and he let the exhaustion take over once again.

The third time he woke up, it was to loud voices calling for him and he whimpered when the dragon curled even tighter around him. And when he woke up for the fourth time that night, Hiro had found himself at home, in his room, with his mother crying next to his bed.

Gasping sharply, Hiro clenched tightly at the sheets before sitting up, eyes wide, “The dragon!” he cried out and his mother was there immediately, quieting him with words he couldn’t hear and pushing him back against the bed with firm, warm hands. “N-no! L-let me go! She needs me!”

“Hush my little Sparrow, the dragon is okay…” he finally registered his mother’s words and he stilled, looking up at her with tear filled eyes. “We found you both in the woods, last night, and I saw the knife little one, and the chains. You saved her, didn’t you?” Hiro nodded shakily and the woman smiled softly back at him. “And she saved you in return. Without her warmth, you would’ve frozen.” She was trying to keep back tears, but the second Hiro started crying, she did too, and she tugged her son into her arms, hugging him tightly to her.

-0-

When his mother finally let him go back outside to see the dragon, he was pleased to see that she was kept in the barn, safe from the dangers outside the village, and when she saw him, she relaxed just a little, but was no less violent to any of his friends or family.

-0-

Hiro was nine when his father built him his first race track, in the fields, and Hiro was beyond ecstatic and he had climbed onto Luna- he would have named her Stardust, but his mother even laughed at that one- and he took off the second he was on the track.

-0-

When he was thirteen, he experience his first ‘official’ race- even though it was on the outskirts of one of the big cities in an old arena with other teenagers as his opponents.

His father had paid for the entry this time, but told him the next time he wanted to race in an arena, he had better pay for it himself. But Hiro knew that it was only his father’s way of saying how proud he was of his little boy. And his mother went with him- because his father had to work the day of the race, which was a disappointment, but Hiro didn’t mind.

He and Luna gave the race their everything, when Hiro grinned down at her and she grinned back when he gripped tightly to her fur.

No one would have thought that racing a blind dragon would do a rider any good, but when they saw him ride Luna like she wasn’t blind, and like she’d been on the track her whole life, they changed their minds.

“Come on Luna, let’s give them our all and show them what we’ve got!” he laughed when she roared in answer and they took off down the stretch of track way when the horn sounded. When they reached the turn, he gripped tight to her fur on the left side of her neck, just in front of her saddle- because they don’t let you into races without one, even if you’re used to riding bareback- and tugged just barely, but enough for her to feel it.

They made the turn with expertise and he petted Luna in his praise, whooping loudly and he turned his head to seek out his mother, only to find that she wasn’t there.

“W-what?” he choked on his breath and his hands tightened, for a brief moment on Luna’s fur, but that was all it took for Luna to swerve out of control. “N-no! Wait! Luna, look out!” She crashed into another racer and they both crashed to the ground, both Hiro and the other rider flying from their saddle and hitting the grass, hard.

Several gasps rang through the arena, but white noise was all Hiro heard as he cracked his eyes open and saw Luna, twisting around where she lay on the ground. Struggling to get up, despite his aches, he made his way over to his dragon and gripped her fur tightly, burying his face into her neck.

“I-I’m sorry…” he whispered, “I-it’s okay… I-I’m so sorry…” he said.

They were taken out of the race, to care for their dragons and it was an hour later, in the recovery wing, when Hiro’s mother found them, with Luna curled tightly around her rider and Hiro staring, frowning at a wall.

“O-oh Gods, Hiro… Hiro, my little Sparrow…!” she choked out and ran to him, fresh tears on her face, covering tracks of old once and Hiro clung tightly to her, his chest aching at the sight.

“M-Momma…?” he asked and she shook her head, begging him not to ask her. But he somehow knew… he always knew, when it came to the ones he loved most.

-0-

The funeral for his father- an accident, they said, but Hiro knew that the fire that claimed his old man’s life, and the lives of many others, could have only been made in a purposeful act against those that worked in the factory- was a dark one, and though many came to pay their respects, they left Hiro alone with his mother and Luna, beside him.

-0-

Hiro was fourteen when he finally convinced his mother to move them to one of the big cities- or at least, a farm outside of one of them, so Luna could have her own space, too. He’d saved up enough money and together they bought themselves a small family farm, where they were the only ones there.

It took a few years, but eventually they got it running- filling the place with horses and pigs, dogs and cats, sheep and goats- and soon people from the big city were coming to visit them and see their animals. What had attracted them, though, Hiro knew, was Luna and her beauty as a dragon so rare, they couldn’t help but come see her themselves.

Luna and he starred in many races, though Hiro tried to give it his best, his heart was never really in it. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t in it enough to protect Luna in the races, and that’s what he did, guiding her to do her very best- but he knew her heart wasn’t in it either, so in tune with his emotions that she couldn’t help but feel the same.

-0-

Hiro was in the stables, brushing Luna’s fur when his mother came into the stables, clutching an envelope in her hands, looking at him with such pride and he almost forgot to feel horrified when he saw exactly what the envelope looked like.

It was from Albion college, where he applied on a whim, even though he knew he wouldn’t ever get in.

It was, after all, the best school for dragon riders and students of magic. “Mother!” he stood at attention and Luna made a noise of confusion before snorting when he turned to look in the general direction of the woman, recognizing her by her scent- of Lavender and honey- while Hiro, her rider, smelled like the sweet of winter mixed with a hint of cinnamon and chocolate.

“Oh hush, little one, you don’t need to act so surprised,” she chided him gently, walking over to the seventeen year old, who smiled sheepishly at her in return. “You should have told me you applied, I would’ve-”

“Mother, please,” Hiro sighed and shook his head as he interrupted her, looking only a tiny bit guilty at her put out look from being interrupted, “I only applied for fun. It’s not like I’m ever going to get in, see?” he took the envelope from her with a smile, noting how it was already open, but he didn’t mind that she opened his mail for him. He took out the letter and began reading, hoping to prove his point, “Dear Mister Winters, we are pleased to say that you’ve been accepted… wait… what?” he froze, tensing up immediately with wide eyes and his mother laughed at him.

“Now what was that about not being accepted?” she teased him and he gaped at her, his blue gaze flitting from the paper to his mother.

“I-I got _in_!?” he asked, suddenly becoming excited when his mother nodded, affirming the thoughts racing through his head.

“You got in, sweetheart,” she cooed and he jumped for joy, turning to Luna, who looked confused.

“We’re going to Albion, Luna! I can’t believe it! You and me girl,” he grinned, hugging his dragon tightly in his arms, the letter held tight, still, in his hands, “we’re going to the _best_ college in the world!”


End file.
